Alan Kerk

Alan Ralph Kerk (born February 27, 1934) is the 18th and current Prime Minister of Kelssek as well as the leader of the Green Party of Kelssek. Winning a majority government in the 2004 elections on a social democratic platform, Kerk's widespread popularity among the electorate has helped him remain in power despite growing rifts in his party.

Early career and activism

Born to immigrant parents, Kerk attended the University of Conroy at Vickery, graduating with a degree in economics and environmental studies, he recieved his law degree from Victoria University. He initially became a freelance journalist before beginning to champion activist causes, particularly in consumer rights and environmental issues, including several court battles with public and private corporations. He is famous for the 1974 Bloodbath Protest, during which he and a group of protestors broke into the House of Commons and drenched then-Prime Minister Luc Deschamps in red corn syrup to protest Deschamps's refusal to force car manufacturer National Kelssek Motors to comply with new car safety standards.

Entry into politics

Kerk's political career began in 1978 when he helped to found the Green Party of Kelssek. The party won 392 seats in the 1980 elections and joined the Liberal Party to form a coalition government. Kerk then left the political scene until 1994 to start the populist consumer advocacy group United Citizens Association. Upon his return, the Green Party voted him into the party leadership unanimously. He would continue to keep his party part of the governmental coalition with the Liberal Party until 2004, when scandal over an extradition dispute caused a wave of MPs to leave the Liberal Party in protest for the Green Party. The fallout of the scandal helped Kerk to lead the Green Party to a big win, giving them the majority in the House of Commons and propelling Kerk to the Prime Minister's office.

Prime Minister

Almost immediately, Kerk faced a crisis when in response to the destruction of their embassy during the Infinite Loop-Packilvania war, Packilvania launched a missile at Mazinaw which killed about 20,000 people, mostly civillians. Rioting erupted nationwide as Hive members were subject to hate attacks, and civil unrest claimed over 160 lives. Besides this crisis, Kerk has had to deal with numerous wars in the East Pacific, although he was lauded for forcing the warring parties in the Krechzianko-Vladistock Island war to a peace agreement.

Another significant controversy was sparked during the 2006 August Crisis, when Kerk invoked emergency laws to detain over a hundred Patriotic Liberation Front militants. Opposition parties accused him of hypocrisy, as he had portrayed himself as a civil rights defender, but polls showed increased support for him in the aftermath and a recall motion he had placed on the ballot was soundly defeated, an effective popular endorsement of his position.

Kerk's significant legislative achievements include the Election Finance Act, which is aimed at eliminating political donations and the "buying of democracy". He also used a public referendum to insert a pacifist clause into the Constitution renouncing Kelssek's right to declare war.